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Kallstrom v. United States3/15/2002
No. 5553
I. INTRODUCTION
We accepted certification in this case to decide whether a Negligent Infliction of Emotional Distress (NIED) cause of action exists under Alaska law for a plaintiff who becomes a participant in the infliction of another's injuries through the negligence of the defendant. Because we think that such an extension is inadvisable, we hold that an NIED claim is not available to such an "unwitting instrument."
II. FACTS AND PROCEEDINGS
On November 27, 1993, Blanche Kallstrom and other members of the public attended a social function and dance at Jake's Place, an alcohol abuse transitional care facility in Dillingham. The lights at the facility had been dimmed for the dance. Non-alcoholic drinks were available to guests in the kitchen area adjacent to the dance floor. During the dance, Kallstrom went to the kitchen at the request of her young cousin to get a drink for nine-year-old Lori Dee Wilson. Kallstrom poured a drink from a pitcher sitting on the counter which she believed to contain fruit juice and gave it to Lori Dee. In fact, the pitcher contained a lye-based caustic detergent that caused severe, permanent internal injuries to Lori Dee when she drank it.
Kallstrom was not related to Lori Dee, but was friendly with Lori Dee and her mother and would see them every two to three months in Kallstrom's store. As a result of her mistake, Kallstrom claims that she sustained severe shock and emotional distress that has persisted in the months following the tragic incident.
Marilyn Wilson, Lori Dee's mother, on her own behalf and as guardian of Lori Dee, filed a complaint in federal court against the United States for negligence. Although Kallstrom was not named as a defendant by Wilson, the government brought a third-party complaint against her for negligence, seeking an allocation of fault. Kallstrom then filed a counterclaim against the government for her injuries allegedly caused by the government's negligence.
The federal district court granted summary judgment in favor of Lori Dee and against the government, concluding that it was negligent as a matter of law to allow an employee or resident of the facility to leave the caustic detergent in the pitcher near the sink. Wilson then settled her claim against the government and her claims were dismissed. The government dismissed its third-party claim against Kallstrom for an allocation of fault, leaving only Kallstrom's counterclaim against the government.
Kallstrom next moved for partial summary judgment against the government on her claim, and the government moved to dismiss Kallstrom's claim for failure to state a claim for relief for NIED under Alaska law. The district court granted the government's motion to dismiss and denied Kallstrom's motion for partial summary judgment.
Kallstrom then appealed to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. The court of appeals certified this question to the Alaska Supreme Court pursuant to Rule 407(a) of the Alaska Rules of Appellate Procedure because, as it noted, the facts of this case are not directly addressed by Alaska case law. Specifically, the court of appeals asks:
Whether a plaintiff, who has not suffered physical injury, may recover damages for the negligent infliction of emotional distress when the plaintiff, without any negligence on her part, becomes the unwitting instrument through which the defendant, because of its negligence, causes injury to an innocent victim.
We agreed to accept certification and now answer the question certified to us.
III. STANDARD OF REVIEW
A decision by this court to accept a cert
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